Kiev, Ukraine: When I was five years old, I wanted to be the Pope. Later on, a doctor. In high school I was almost sure I would be a biologist, but then I got involved in the Model United Nations and various organizations promoting European integration, which shifted my interest towards politics.    I studied international politics and European studies at the University of Economics in Prague.

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme announced this week the five winners of the "UNV Online Volunteering Award 2015" and launched a global voting campaign for the public's favourite winner.  Through the UNV Online Volunteering service, UNV mobilizes every year more than 11,000 UN Online Volunteers who undertake more than 17,000 online volunteering assignments. 60 percent of UN Online Volunteers come from the global South.

The United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme announced this week the five winners of the "UNV Online Volunteering Award 2015" and launched a global voting campaign for the public's favourite winner.  Through the UNV Online Volunteering service, UNV mobilizes every year more than 11,000 UN Online Volunteers who undertake more than 17,000 online volunteering assignments. 60 percent of UN Online Volunteers come from the global South.

On IVD 2015 we challenge everyone to think about how they can make a difference in implementing the Global Goals. In this year’s IVD campaign you will see questions such as “Are you part of the change?”, “Will you take the challenge?“ “Are you ready?” and you, as UN Volunteers and volunteers worldwide, will have the answers, as thousand of individuals show how their volunteering is making a contribution, bringing to light that volunteering is invaluable in making the world a better place.

IVD 2015 “Your world is changing. Are you? Volunteer!” starts a dialogue about how volunteerism is vital to the success of the new Sustainable Development Goals.

United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme Executive Coordinator, Richard Dictus, and the Head of the UN Division from the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Simon Koppers, engaged in a strategic partner dialogue, with the aim of strengthening collaboration and exploring further partnering opportunities, in particular in the context of the 2030 Agenda and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme Executive Coordinator, Richard Dictus, and the Head of the UN Division from the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Simon Koppers, engaged in a strategic partner dialogue, with the aim of strengthening collaboration and exploring further partnering opportunities, in particular in the context of the 2030 Agenda and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The "CEOs’ roundtable on national volunteerism", which was held on 22 October 2015 in Kenya, was a milestone for the national volunteer community in the country, as it concluded with a call for the speedy adoption of the National Volunteer Policy and an appeal to put in place a framework for promoting volunteerism in the country. The National Volunteer Policy has been developed with significant support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme, and can also help raise the profile of volunteers in the country.

The "CEOs’ roundtable on national volunteerism", which was held on 22 October 2015 in Kenya, was a milestone for the national volunteer community in the country, as it concluded with a call for the speedy adoption of the National Volunteer Policy and an appeal to put in place a framework for promoting volunteerism in the country. The National Volunteer Policy has been developed with significant support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) programme, and can also help raise the profile of volunteers in the country.

The United Nations Volunteer (UNV) programme and the Beijing Volunteer Service Federation (BVF) co-hosted the first International Volunteer Service Exchange Conference on 12-13 October, in Beijing, China.